South Island Images

How do you begin to explain the immense beauty and diversity of the South Island? It's near impossible! For a start, you can't go past the incredible mountains of the Southern Alps that run the length of the South Island, and in my opinion you won't get a more amazing view than with a visit to Mount Cook where the glacial lakes and walks blow your mind around every corner.

When you've tired of Mount Cook (if that's actually possible!), the drive to Milford Sound ranks up there for me as the most amazing drive in New Zealand. The journey through Fiordland is at least as good as the destination itself. And you certainly can't leave out Queenstown and Wanaka, where lakeside views are usually captured with jaw-dropping reflections and a background of snow-capped mountains.

No trip to the South Island would be complete without visits to both coastlines that are as different and unique that they might as well be in completely different countries. The wild and rugged west coast that hosts beaches like Wharariki is a far cry from the sheltered waters of Hoopers Inlet in Dunedin, but both are equally beautiful in their own right. And with amazing lighthouses like Cape Campbell and Nugget Point to visit in more remote spots, the drive along the coast is simply a visual feast round every corner.

Whenever I do manage to get down to the South Island, which is not nearly as often as I would like, the minute I leave I find I'm already planning the next trip back!